01 / Fire watch
Fire watch
An officer walking the building continuously while fire protection is down.
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When is fire watch required in Redwood City?
If your fire alarm or sprinklers are down, here’s when a watch is called for, who decides and what brings it to an end.
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Why it comes up.
With the alarm or sprinklers out of action, the building has lost its automatic warning. A fire watch officer fills that gap by walking the building until the system is working again.
In Redwood City the request usually comes from the Redwood City Fire Department, your insurer or the contractor who services the system, often after an inspection turns up a fault or when a repair is booked. We supply the officer once they’ve asked for one.
What a watch involves.
An officer walks the affected areas continuously, watching for smoke, heat and blocked exits, and does nothing else while the system is down. Our fire watch service page covers the rounds, the log and the rates.
What the record shows.
Each round is written down with the time and the areas walked. That log is how the building shows the fire department or your contractor that coverage never lapsed, so it stays on site until the watch is over.
How a watch ends.
Once the system is repaired, tested and signed off, the watch can stop. That might be one night for a quick panel fix or several weeks for a sprinkler shutdown during a buildout. When your contractor confirms the sign-off, the officer’s last round goes in the log and the post closes.
Setting it up.
Call as soon as you hear a system is coming offline, so the first round starts before the building is left uncovered. What to have ready for that call is listed on the fire watch service page.
Common fire watch situations in Redwood City buildings
Fire watch usually comes down to a handful of situations: sprinklers drained for tenant improvements in an office building, a fire panel fault in an apartment building overnight, hot work during a remodel or a warehouse sprinkler line damaged by a forklift. In each case the building stays open or occupied, so someone has to stand in for the system.
The route is planned around the affected zone rather than the whole building, unless the entire system is down. That keeps each loop short enough that every affected area is seen often.
Getting the building ready for the officer
A fire watch officer works best when every affected space opens without waiting for keys. Before the first round, someone on site should show the officer the impaired areas, the exits, the extinguishers and where to find the building contact. If tenants occupy those floors, a short note letting them know someone will be walking through avoids surprises.
When the repair runs long
Repairs slip. A part takes longer to arrive, a contractor gets rescheduled, a sign-off moves back. When that happens, fire watch simply carries on and the log keeps growing night after night. Tell us as soon as the date moves so we can plan the extra shifts.
If the building needs regular security once the system is back, temporary officers or a standing on-site guard pick up from there.
A few useful answers
Quick answers.
Can people keep working while fire watch is on?
Yes. Work carries on as normal while the officer makes the rounds.
Who holds on to the record?
You do. It stays in the building.
Is fire watch the same as having a security guard?
No. A fire watch officer focuses only on fire safety rounds, while a guard handles entrances, visitors and general security.
If the officer smells smoke on a round, what do they do?
They raise the alarm, call emergency services, help clear the area and then reach your building contact, noting all of it in the log.
Services
Services this guide covers
02 / Short notice
Temporary security guards
Officers for a night, a week or a busy season, with no long contract.
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